


Sweet Revenge

by AgentOfShip



Series: Meet-Cute Prompts [3]
Category: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (TV)
Genre: F/M, Meet-Cute, Strangers to Lovers, The Enemy of My Enemy, Wedding, the saga of Fitz and snails continues
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-01
Updated: 2019-08-01
Packaged: 2020-07-28 06:44:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,648
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20059738
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AgentOfShip/pseuds/AgentOfShip
Summary: Written for the meet-cute prompt: You had an assigned seat next to them at a wedding for a mutual friend. (Except the person who invited them isn't exactly a friend and things don't exactly work the way they expected)Beta'd by the wonderful @Libbyweasley





	Sweet Revenge

Jemma was seriously starting to think that she might not have been invited purely out of friendship after all. 

She'd been rather surprised to be invited to Cathy Foreman's wedding, to be honest. They'd been what she supposed could be described as frenemies back in university. They had always acted friendly face to face but Cathy kept trying to one-up her in all the classes they shared. So when Jemma had ended up first in her class, even graduating early, she'd received a very insincere congratulations from Cathy and thought that would most likely be the last time she heard of her. 

She'd first decided not to go when she received the invitation, not having a plus one to bring along or knowing if she'd know anyone else. But since she thought Cathy had been able to put aside her petty rivalry and had wanted Jemma to share her happy day, she thought the young woman deserved her effort. And it was in Perthshire, so that was an opportunity for sightseeing if all else went wrong. She really did love Perthshire.

But then, the ceremony took place and when Jemma went to congratulate her "friend" before the reception, she'd answered with the same fake friendliness as before, insisting on how sad it was that Jemma was alone when she'd found the love of her life. She'd also not been very subtle when referring to how much money she and her new husband made at the pharmaceutical lab they were working for. Which Jemma could have guessed for herself considering the number of guests and obnoxious decoration. What was the theme for the wedding, honestly? Money and tacky luxury? 

So she'd come to the conclusion that she'd been invited only so that Cathy could rub her success and happiness in her face. And if she even needed confirmation, Jemma had somehow ended up at a table where not only she didn't know anyone but everyone seemed to know each other and be very good friends. Except for the curly haired man originally sitting on the opposite side of the table who'd ended up next to her five minutes ago when that guy with the awful cologne had asked to switch so he could be next to the tall blonde who, for some strange reason, seemed happy about it. The new one was wearing a rather nice, discreet scent and didn't make disgusting noises when he ate so that, at least, was an improvement.

He sighed and she gave him a side glance. He had a really nice profile too. Nice jaw. Bright, blue eyes. At least, if this evening turned out to be even more boring, she supposed she could spend it watching him. 

Or if she didn't want to be creepy, she could probably talk to him. He looked awfully bored and that was what people did at weddings, right? Talk to the people sitting next to them? Make light conversation? It was only polite and he couldn't possibly be worse than cologne guy. 

"Everything alright?" she asked, deciding that as a conversation opener, it was as good as any since he'd just sighed again. 

"Ah, yes, I just-I'm... uh--"

"Bored to death?"

He laughed as he turned fully towards her.

"Ah no, I wouldn't say that exactly, I--" She raised her eyebrows at him. "Yeah, you're right, I'm bored."

He had a lovely Scottish accent too. Probably a friend or family of the groom then. 

"Ah. So you don't know anyone else here either?"

"Actually I do. Old colleagues all the way over there," he said pointing towards the opposite side of the room, much closer to the bride and groom's table."

"Oh, that's--"

"Weird, right?"

"Yes." That sounded very inconsiderate actually. Even if there wasn't room at the table for him, he could at least have been assigned a closer table. "So, bride or groom?"

"Bride. I worked with Cathy in London for a few years. Honestly, I was very surprised she invited me at all. We were, well not friends, but friendly at least at first but at some point, she somehow decided we were like rivals or something."

"Well, that sounds familiar."

He raised his eyebrows in interest.

"I was at Uni with Cathy and she had this weird way of being friendly while--"

"Oh!" he cut her off, a look of realization and amusement on his face. "You're the infamous Jemma, aren't you?"

"What?"

He laughed lightly as he moved a little closer and his voice lowered to a conspiratorial tone.

"Sorry, it's just... She kept talking about that girl who kept one-upping her and had probably cheated on her exams to get such good grades and--"

"Hey, I would never cheat, I work very hard to get such good grades!"

"Oh, no I never thought you did. Cathy can be really, hum, what's the word..."

"Petty? Jealous?"

He grinned and Jemma reciprocated it. Maybe this wouldn't be such a terrible evening after all.

"So you're that Jemma, right?" She nodded. "I'm Fitz by the way."

"Nice to meet you, Fitz," she said, lightly squeezing his arm in greeting. 

"And you. It's always nice meeting a celebrity."

The waiter brought their entrée and they were quiet for a moment. Obviously, Fitz didn't seem fond of snails because he'd picked at it with his small fork for a minute then turned his plate around to just eat the side salad and extra garlic sauce on bread. After a moment, Jemma decided it was her best option and did the same. Fitz gave her a knowing smile when he saw her reach for the bread. 

"So you're here on your own too? That's pretty brave considering how much Cathy loves you. I know people and I still wasn't going to come but my friend kept insisting that it's the best way to meet people and wouldn't let go so..."

"Well, you do meet people," she said, smiling as she held his gaze pointedly.

Was she flirting? With this man she'd met less than ten minutes ago? Well, of course she was. He seemed nice and funny, probably interesting, obviously single and getting more handsome by the minute. He smiled back, warm and soft, as he nodded and she felt a nice little thrill go through her body. 

"Anyway, I almost didn't come either but I thought it was a nice gesture to invite me and I should make the effort, but now..." She hesitated. She didn't want to look like she was talking behind her supposed friend's back and sound petty to Fitz before he had the time to notice what she hoped he would consider as her good qualities.

"What?" he insisted, a rather encouraging smirk at the corner of his lips. 

"It's just that, I don't want to criticize this gorgeous wedding and, uh, elegant food, but considering the table plan and the way Cathy kind of--"

"You think she invited us to show off and get her revenge or something, don't you?"

"Whaaaat? Nooo... Really? You think so?"

"Come on, Jemma!" he said, bumping her shoulder teasingly. "I talked to her for five minutes. She only talked about how much money she and Steve were making at Evil Corp--"

"Evil Corp?"

"Don't remember the name but have you seen the kind of drugs they're working on and how much they're selling them for?"

Jemma chuckled despite herself and he smiled as he moved a little closer again.

"I guess you have a point."

"Anyway, she only talked about that and about how much she loved Steve and didn't ask a single thing about me. She just insisted on how sad it was that I was alone and single. I mean, she might as well said she found someone better than me!"

"Oh. Did you two--" 

"No! No, no, no, no, no!" he cut her off. "No, she flirted with me and I didn't flirt back. She really isn't my type." 

"Oh!"

For some reason, she felt relieved. Her dating history wasn't necessarily stellar. She wasn't proud of some choices she'd made when she was younger but she'd seen the kind of guys Cathy used to date, and she'd met Steve of course. Fitz didn't seem to fit, which was a really good thing, and she would have been disappointed if she'd been wrong after all.

"When I say she isn't my type, I mean she was too jealous and aggressive and fake and uh... but anyway she isn't my type but I do like... women..." 

Jemma bit her lip not to smile too wide. He was being very obvious and terribly awkward and he was now a nice shade of red, but Jemma found it quite adorable. 

"Noted," she just said, bumping his shoulder gently and waiting for him to look back up from his plate to flash him a smile that hopefully conveyed that she considered it a positive bit of information. He smiled back and cleared his throat before sitting back in his chair in a way that was probably supposed to appear casual but was, again, awkward and, somehow, cute. Not to mention it pulled his shirt across his shoulders and gave her a lovely glimpse of what might be under.

"So, what do you think? She invited us to rub it in our faces?"

"Oh yeah, absolutely."

"What do you think we should do about it?" he asked, tilting his head to the side and making his neck stand out distractingly.

"I guess we have no other choice but to enjoy ourselves and have as much fun as possible. We cannot let her win, Fitz!"

-0-0-0-

"Fitz, those are brilliant!" 

"Not to mention adorable," he added, showing her yet another picture of his drones where they kind of looked like tiny birds huddled together. She nodded enthusiastically.

"We really need someone like you at my company. I bet you could solve that problem we have with the size of the components in my delivery mechanism in a heartbeat."

"Oh, like you need anyone's help on anything. I looked up that article you wrote on dendrotoxins while you were in the loo. I bet you could fix this yourself. At worst, get a new PhD and in a few months, you're good."

Jemma felt her cheeks heat up as he beamed at her excitedly. Of course, compliments were always nice but, even though he was obviously exaggerating, there was a sincerity in the way he believed in her after having only spent an hour or so together that warmed her heart. She'd already been told that if she wanted something fixed, she could get yet another degree and do it herself. But it was usually said with quite a degree of annoyance and bitterness. 

"Not that I would mind working with you of course. Imagine the things we could do together!"

Jemma smiled as she turned fully towards him and lowered her voice.

"Fitz, are you science-flirting with me?"

His cheeks pinked as he smiled but before he could answer, someone cleared their throat loudly in the mic and she thought he looked a little disappointed as he turned towards the stage. 

Jemma had planned to leave as soon as the meal was over and everyone was too busy dancing to notice. But they had somehow made it through all the various courses without her realizing it and now, she didn't want the night to end or have their conversation interrupted. 

On stage, the maid of honor announced that there'd be a break before they served the cake and that, in a moment, they would take that opportunity to pass the mic around the tables so that each guest could talk about how they met the bride or groom and tell funny anecdotes.

Jemma's eyes widened and she turned around to find the same expression on Fitz's face.

"Time to get some fresh air?" he offered with an amusing mix of hope and despair.

"Yes please!" 

Fitz stood up and offered his arm and they walked out of the room as quickly as they could without looking like they were running away with stolen cutlery. They walked down the slightly darkened hallway that led towards the park all while exchanging glimpses and shy smiles. There was a lot to be said about Cathy, but she did choose a lovely setting for her wedding and Jemma wouldn't mind having the lovely view you had of the lake a little further down from the castle just to Fitz and herself for a moment. She felt like a teenager trying to escape school to skip class with some bad boy. Not that she ever did it before or thought that Fitz was a bad boy but it was exciting all the same.

But only a few meters away from freedom, Jemma heard Cathy's voice behind them. Not really taking the time to think, she grabbed Fitz's arm tighter and pulled him with her as she took a quick left turn. He followed and actually quickened the pace until he found a small but rather providential alcove to the side and ended up with his back to the wall and her much closer to him than they'd been all evening. They were both panting and grinning wildly. 

"Uh, Jemma?" he whispered, his breath fanning her cheek making her skin tingle delightfully. "Why are we running away from Cathy?"

"Shush, she'll hear us!" she replied, putting her finger on his lips to make sure he'd do as she said. 

His eyes widened and so did hers. Those were nice lips, soft and warm and very tempting. They remained like this for a moment, their eyes locked on each other as Jemma tried to focus on the eventual footsteps coming their way. 

"You don't want to be stuck listening to one more of her boring stories right now, do you?" she whispered when she thought they were safe. 

He shook his head enthusiastically and she remembered that she still had her finger on his lips. She pulled it away reluctantly but he caught her hand almost immediately and held it gently between them, his eyes turning dangerously soft as they went up from her hand to her face. 

"So Jemma, I was thinking we could, I mean would you maybe... have dinner with me? I mean back in London, in a few days or whenever you want. If you want to. Like a-a date kind of dinner. I think I haven't exactly been subtle about how much I like you and I feel like we have some sort hum..."

He moved their slightly entwined hands between them in a kind of awkward gesture but she understood what he meant. He was right and it was rather obvious anyway. Overwhelming in fact.

"Chemistry?"

He nodded eagerly, his body moving almost imperceptibly closer as he did.

"So?"

"I'd love to," she replied, her voice low and raspier than she expected.

"Yeah?"

"Mmhm," she mumbled and then her lips were on his. 

Fitz gasped slightly but then quickly melted into it, his free hand coming around her waist to pull her flush against him. The touch of his lips was even more intoxicating than she'd anticipated, the faint taste of champagne adding to her own, and the kiss went straight from tentative to hungry and urgent in a matter of seconds. She pressed her tongue across his lips and he groaned quietly as he gave her access. Jemma let go of his hand to run her fingers over his slightly scratchy stubble and into the springy curls she'd spent a significant amount of time admiring during dinner. They were just as soft as expected, like threading her hands through a big wooly sweater, and it only served to reinforce the sense of rightness this kiss was giving her, however completely unexpected it was. As for Fitz, it seemed like he couldn't get her close enough and she really had nothing to say against that. She squeaked when he lifted her off the ground though and they broke the kiss. 

"Sorry," he said, looking mightily flustered and anything but sorry. 

"That is perfectly alright," she said, stroking her thumb over the apple of his cheek. 

His lips pulled up into a dopey smile and he cradled her cheek before moving to kiss her again. Somehow he'd managed to turn them around as he let her down and she found herself pinned against the hard surface of the wall, the sensation a stark contrast with the warmth of his wandering hands. Gone was the adorable stuttering mess from earlier. Fitz was kissing and touching her with a confidence and passion that made her skin tingle and eager for more. She moaned when one of his hands slid down to cup her arse and she would have followed through with some wandering of her own if they weren't interrupted by what sounded like a shrieking banshee. 

They were apparently both too far gone to jump apart so they lazily turned to Cathy whose beetroot red face contrasted quite a lot with her aggressively white dress. 

"Oh, hey Cathy, congratulations again on your wedding. And what a lovely reception," Jemma said, doing her best to sound casual while Fitz's hand was still holding on tightly to her bum. 

"Yeah, great food," Fitz added and Jemma had to bite her lip not to laugh but Cathy ignored them anyway.

"Oh even tonight, it has to be all about you two, you're so self-centered!" she cried out, leveling them with a severe look that made them feel like they were two teenagers caught together snogging in their room after hours.

"I don't know Cathy, I just think your speech about loneliness got to me after all. I just had to make do with poor Fitz here," Jemma replied, turning to him to put her arm around his neck and give him a quick grin. "I mean, we obviously don't have much in common but you know... I'm not getting any younger."

"Ugh, fine. Have it your own way then. I have people waiting for me over there because I am the star of this evening. Didn't know you could be such a tart though!" 

And with that, she left in a flurry of white fabric, her heels resounding loudly and quite dramatically in the large, deserted hallway. 

"I don't know if I should feel chastised or run after her to defend your honor," Fitz said once Cathy was out of earshot and Jemma burst out laughing.

"Very sweet of you to offer," she said, pecking his lips lightly. "But I couldn't care less what Cathy thinks about the way I act at a wedding I was invited at out of petty revenge."

"You're completely right. And I'm not saying that just because you-we hum..."

"Because you currently have your hand on my bum?" Panic set in his eyes for a moment and she didn't have the heart to tease him and let him think he did something she hadn't wanted him to do. "Which is rather nice by the way."

"Yes, it is."

He made a contented noise as he squeezed a little tighter and she laughed throatily as she ignored her instinct to push him back against the wall. 

"And she's being irrational anyway. It's not like I climbed on your lap and snogged you in the middle of the reception hall." Fitz coughed as he turned a lovely shade of pink and she rubbed his back soothingly. "I'm just saying, she's mad her plan of making us have a miserable evening didn't work. And honestly, she should have known better, right?" 

"You mean she should have known that we would get along?" 

"Of course! That was pretty stupid of her not to see it." 

"Yes," he said, beaming at her before diving back for another kiss, softer, more tender this time. But which still didn't fail to make her feel all warm and tingly just the same.

"Want to leave early?" she asked when they broke apart and he pouted adorably.

"But cake?"

"Well yeah, we can go back there, face Cathy's glare or..." He raised his eyebrows in interest. "Room service is open 24/7 at my hotel and they have really good cake."

She could almost see the cogs turning in his head as he tried to decipher if cake at her hotel just meant cake at her hotel or if it meant more. She didn't really know herself. She knew she didn't want the night to end so soon, that she wanted to spend more time with him, possibly with fewer people around.

"Alright, let's go get out coats," he suddenly said, grabbing her hand as he started walking down the hall very decidedly. She wondered if it was the promise of cake or more that decided him. She laughed as she pulled on his arm to stop him and force him to turn around.

"Fitz, when I mean cake..."

"I'm not expecting more than cake, don't worry." He pecked her cheek and her heart melted. "Although I won't say no to more kissing." 

"I am certainly not opposed to that. Just one more thing before we leave..." 

She wound her arms around his waist and pressed her lips to his, kissing him fiercely before her hands descended down his back and closed around his butt. He groaned as she took her time to enjoy how lovely and round and firm it felt.

"You owed me one," she said as they broke the kiss and she pulled her hands up, deciding more of this could wait for a more private setting.

"It really was a wonderful wedding, wasn't it?" he asked with that same adoring expression she caught on his face more and more as the evening advanced and that she found both endearing and terribly dangerous.

"The best."


End file.
